Presently, many different types and constructions of hoses are known. Some hoses are simple ducts or tubes manufactured from materials such as rubber or plastic. However, such hoses are unable to withstand relatively high internal pressures resulting from the conduction of fluids or gases through the hoses at high velocities. To withstand high internal pressures, reinforced hoses may be employed.
Certain conventional reinforced hoses apply a braided layer of nylon or various metal wires about a tube. Hoses reinforced with nylon have relatively low resistances to high internal pressures. Hoses reinforced with aluminum are similarly unable to resist relatively high pressures. Furthermore, aluminum reinforced hoses are highly susceptible to corrosion, especially when in the presence of acids or detergents. Because of these and other disadvantages, nylon and aluminum reinforced hoses are only used in limited applications.
Hoses reinforced with stainless steel, due in part to their relatively high resistance to pressures, have enjoyed more commercial success than their nylon and aluminum counterparts. While stainless steel reinforced hoses are able to withstand higher pressures than aluminum and nylon reinforced hoses, they possess several undesirable attributes. First, such hoses are relatively inflexible. That is, stainless steel reinforced hoses can kink and permanently disfigure if contorted in various manners. This results in the restriction of flow of liquids or gases through the hose. Second, manufacturing a hose having a metal reinforcement is relatively cumbersome and costly in light of the necessary difficult task of twisting the metal into a braid about the hose. Third, where stainless steel is used to form the reinforcement, the weight of the reinforced hose is substantial. Fourth, stainless steel hoses are susceptible to corrosion under certain conditions.
It is known that when a storage water heater is connected to a city water main, a galvanic action can be created. This galvanic action is created by the different kinds of metals present on the installation, creating electrical currents that tend to decompose the metal parts of the water heater and other associated fittings. The result is that the water heater may leak and eventually will have to be repaired or replaced.
In the past, hot water heaters, faucets, toilets, and other appliances were installed with rigid pipe such as copper tubing. This task was burdensome and not practical for do-it-yourself amateurs and homeowners. Corrugated flexible copper pipes and metal braided flexible connectors have been used, but none offer an electrically-insulating connection. Other types of insulating devices have been developed as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,991,876.